Best-selling author Christina Baker Kline views them anew in her novel, "A Piece of the World." Andrew Wyeth's "Christina's World" was inspired by his neighbor and friend, Christina Olson, who was stricken by polio as a child. The 1948 painting shows a woman pulling herself across a field toward a farmhouse on the horizon. Kline's novel imagines Olson's story, blending fiction with fact.

Kline, who also wrote the 2014 best-seller "Orphan Train," will speak Monday, Feb. 5, the second author in the 2018 Nick Linn Lecture Series. She will be followed by Gregg Hurwitz on March 12 and Adriana Trigiani on March 26.

The lectures, presented by the Friends of the Library of Collier County, are held in the Grand Pavilion at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in North Naples. Luncheon begins at noon with the featured author speaking at 1 p.m. For more information and tickets, go to www.collier-friends.org/nick-linn-lecture-series or call Marlene Kern in the Friends office at 239-262-8135.

"A Piece of the World"(Photo: Handout)

Kline has written five other novels, including "Orphan Train Girl," a young reader's edition of her best-seller, and four nonfiction books. Kline lives in an old house in Montclair, New Jersey, with her husband, David Kline, and three sons, Hayden, Will and Eli. She spends as much time as possible in an even older house in Southwest Harbor, Maine, according to her website, christinabakerkline.com.

Kline is coming to Naples after events in Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina. She answered questions by email.

Q. Where do you get your ideas? How did you conceive of turning a work of art into a novel?

Having grown up in Maine, I’ve been familiar with Wyeth’s art, and his painting "Christina’s World" in particular, for years. (Wyeth lived part-time in Maine for most of his life.) While researching "Orphan Train" I learned a great deal about early- to mid-20th century America. I became fascinated with rural life: how people get by and what emotional tools they need to survive hard times. "A Piece of the World" — the story of an ordinary woman who lives in rural Maine during that time period, and how she became a famous artist’s muse — seemed like the right next step for me.

Q. The cover of the hardcover edition of “A Piece of the World” shows only a “piece” of Wyeth’s painting. Is there meaning in that?

A. A reproduction of the painting is inside the book. The cover of the hardcover, and the slightly different cover of the paperback, show a piece of the world that would’ve been very familiar to Christina Olson. I wanted to capture a feeling, not copy the painting itself.

Q. Where do you draw the line between fact and fiction when writing about real characters?

A. "A Piece of the World" is written from the perspective of Christina Olson; obviously, I don’t know what she was thinking. But I tried to adhere to the facts of her real-life story as much as possible. Her life, and family history, are so interesting. And Wyeth was always larger than life; I knew I didn’t have to exaggerate anything to bring him to life on the page.

Q. Who are your favorite authors? What are you reading now?

A. My favorite authors are the 19th- and early-20th-century novelists I return to again and again: Tolstoy, George Eliot, Flaubert, Virginia Woolf, Edith Wharton. But I love to read contemporary novelists as well. At the moment I’m reading "Sing, Unburied, Sing" and "The Woman in the Window" (a fast-paced thriller written by an editor at my publishing house!).

Q. What’s your best advice for students and aspiring writers?

A. First of all, follow the yes. If you really want to write, listen to the people who are encouraging you, and try to ignore the ones who aren’t.

Second, writing is only a hobby until you finish, revise, and finish again. (And repeat.) If you want to get published, you need to understand that inspiration is a small part of the process. I really became a writer when I learned to revise. (The best way to learn is by doing — and reading lots and lots of great writing.)

Q. What’s next?

A. My new novel is about the hidden history of the convict women who transformed Australia. It’s both an epic story and an intimate one. I’m working on it now — and hope it’ll be on shelves by winter 2020. Wish me luck!